


Speak

by FlowersAndSkeletons



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: F/F, Love Triangles, Mutual Pining, one-sided
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22611922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlowersAndSkeletons/pseuds/FlowersAndSkeletons
Summary: "Their blood was green, Glimmer learned. She wondered if Prime’s was the same. That horrid fluorescent green of their blood and teeth was the one thing that wasn’t dulled by the sterile monochrome of the ship. That, and Catra."
Relationships: Adora/Glimmer (She-Ra), Catra/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 89





	Speak

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a little drabble I wanted to get down. I hope you all enjoy!

Silence was deafening on Horde Prime’s ship. 

Glimmer decided it was something to do with the black and gray paint that coated every surface. Despite the metal and concrete, everything not directly in front of her was dampened to a low rumble in the walls and floor. The mechanical creaks and groans became distant rhythms thudding in her skull. The conversations of the clone army were little more than vibrations beneath her hands, and only when they were just outside the cell. 

She thought back to the lively villages within Brightmoon’s borders, the chirping birds and calls of citizens throughout the castle. Even in the tranquil quiet of home, there was noise. The woods themselves spoke to her. Complete silence never occurred and when it did, it was cold and hostile, the sound of a battlefield after the fires were put out and she was the last one lingering around to bear witness. 

It was fitting. Every day spent stuck with Horde Prime was a battle in itself, between biting her tongue when he threatened another world and fighting to keep a calm face when he lashed out in a brutal fit of anger. She lost count of the poor clones that met their end whenever Prime met a mild inconvenience. 

Their blood was green, she learned. She wondered if Prime’s was the same. That horrid fluorescent green of their blood and teeth was the one thing that wasn’t dulled by the sterile monochrome of the ship. 

That, and Catra. 

The force captain sat across from her day in and day out, watching her with narrowed eyes. There was a cold truce between them now, but only barely. For the first weeks in their new shared home, they fought until neither could raise a fist. The splits in Catra’s eyebrow and lip were just now beginning to heal. Glimmer figured the claws marks on her hands and arms would leave scars in their wake. 

It took weeks of brawling before they said a civil word to each other. After the floodgates opened, they told stories. They shared confessions and secrets. In between insults and snaps, Glimmer watched Catra soften around the edges. Her claws no longer dug into Glimmer’s wrist when she had to stop the queen from speaking against Horde Prime. Her gaze didn’t cut across Glimmer’s skin from across the cell. 

When they slept back to back on the one cot provided, when either or both of them woke up screaming, Catra’s grip on her hand or shoulder wasn’t so harsh anymore. 

Glimmer found that Catra had a habit of curling up in her sleep. Lately, it was against Glimmer’s back, which never bode well when Glimmer shot up straight out of a dead sleep. 

Catra yelped as she went tumbling off the side of the bunk. Glimmer clutched at her chest, panting and drenched in sweat as Catra clawed her way back up with her hair standing on end. She snarled and flattened her ears against her head as Glimmer screwed her eyes shut. 

“What the hell was that for, Sparkles?!” she demanded. Her voice was still loud, at least. 

Glimmer didn’t respond. Even if her world now was all muted grays and neon green, the blood in her dreams was still as vivid red as ever. She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying out for Adora, that dopey grin stuck in her head between flashing images of fallen warriors and mortal wounds. She thought of being in the blonde’s arms again. She just needed one chance to apologize for all the horrible things she said before Prime arrived. One chance to let Adora know she didn’t mean it. It was all she needed. 

Any more waiting in this silent hellhole was going to drive her insane.

Catra’s warm hand on her shoulder drew her back to reality. The force captain’s ears swiveled forward, and her posture relaxed as her luminescent eyes studied Glimmer. She took a deep breath. Glimmer turned away. 

“Tell me,” Catra said. 

“Adora,” Glimmer explained curtly. 

Catra’s eyes narrowed. “It’s always Adora.” 

“What?” 

Catra’s hand drifted across Glimmer’s collarbone to the side of her neck, coaxing her closer. She pressed her lips to the curve of the queen’s shoulder and held them there. It wasn’t a kiss, only a comfort. That’s what they told themselves. They weren’t comfortable with each other, only civil and lonely and trapped together in one small cell for weeks on end. They were human contact and nothing more.

“She’s not coming,” Catra mumbled against her skin. 

“You don’t know that.” 

“Sparkles.” Catra tugged on her. Glimmer sighed, grabbing Catra’s wrist and holding her hand in place against her neck. “I know how her rescue attempts go when it comes to you, remember? She would already be here if she was going to come at all.” She nuzzled her nose against Glimmer’s jaw. “Trust me. I know her.” 

“No, I know her. You _knew_ her.” 

“Do you think you’ll tell her the same thing about me?” 

“Stop it.” 

“Glimmer.” 

A chill raced up Glimmer’s spine. “Say my name again.” 

Catra lifted her head. “What?” 

“Say my name again.” She closed her eyes and turned her head to press against Catra’s shoulder. “Please.” 

“Glimmer.” Catra wrapped her arms around the queen’s neck. “Glimmer.” She cupped her face and pressed their foreheads together. “Glimmer. Look at me.” Glimmer’s eyes cracked open as Catra brushed the pad of her thumb across her cheek. “She’s not coming back.” 

Glimmer’s eyes went wide. She tried to pull away, but Catra held her in place. “She will come back,” she said, more to herself than Catra. 

Catra’s fingers tangled in her hair. Her eyes turned cold and sharp and ruthless again, their old smug humor entirely absent. Glimmer barely noticed before Catra pushed her back with a scoff. “You’re hopeless.” 

“What?” 

“Go back to sleep, Sparkles. You act even worse around Horde Prime when you’re tired and I don’t want to wash any more clone blood out of my uniform.” 

Catra curled up with her back to Glimmer. Taking a deep breath, the queen pushed her hair out of her face and stretched out on her side, her back pressed to Catra’s as she closed her eyes. Just before she drifted off, Catra turned over and wrapped her arm around Glimmer’s waist. Although the rest she prayed for never came, Catra’s warmth pressed against her back made it just a bit easier. 

\---

Glimmer paced through the empty cell, biting at her thumbnail. Her stomach twisted in cold knots as she waited for the muted footsteps of clones in the corridor. The soft thrumming of machinery through the walls drowned out her panicked thoughts, like a beehive in her skull driving her mad. She banged her fist against the metal wall just to hear something, but nothing helped. Nothing except Catra. 

It was never a good thing when Horde Prime separated them. Glimmer shuddered, thinking of his cold claws against her cheek. Separation meant beatings and threats, clones killed with no warning just to show what he could do to them if they stepped out of line. The last time Glimmer faced him alone, he grinned as the clone bled out, writhing on the floor as it took its last breath. His claws were stained the same color as his teeth. 

Glimmer whirled around as the energy field sealing off the cell disappeared. Two clones held Catra by the arms between them, her legs dragging behind and her head slumped forward. Glimmer froze. The clones tossed Catra face down into the cell and activated the energy field behind them. 

“Catra!” 

The force captain groaned as she rolled onto her back. One eye was swollen shut, and blood trickled from her nose and the corners of her mouth. Her breathing was heavy and labored, coming in short gasps as Glimmer knelt beside her. Holding Catra’s head in her lap, she eased her headpiece off and brushed her hair out of her face. Catra hissed through gritted teeth. 

“What happened?” Glimmer asked. 

“What do you think?” Catra choked out. A rattling cough wracked her body, and she twisted in pain beneath Glimmer’s hands. 

Glimmer shushed her and eased her down. “Take it easy,” she cooed. 

“Say something.” Catra opened her eyes, holding Glimmer’s hand against her cheek. “I’m sick of everything being so quiet. If you weren’t here, I’d lose my mind.” 

“Catra…” 

“Please say something. Anything. I just need to hear you right now.” Catra’s breathing evened out as she gripped Glimmer’s hand. “Tell me what Brightmoon was like before all the fighting. Tell me about Etheria outside the Fright Zone.” 

“I… okay.” Using the corner of her cape to wipe away the blood on Catra’s face, she sighed and conjured Brightmoon in her mind. “It’s calm there. It doesn’t look anything like here or the Fright Zone. All the colors are light pastels.”

“Like you?”

“A little, but they’re not as bright. Um, there are birds and little animals everywhere. The castle is surrounded by these massive gardens and waterfalls that turn gold as the sun goes down, and you can see the whispering woods for what seems like forever. It’s easy to breathe in Brightmoon. The air is fresh and smells like the forest. It doesn’t stink and burn your lungs like the air in the Fright Zone.” 

Catra snickered. “It does stink.” 

Glimmer smiled and stroked Catra’s cheek. “What else do you want to know?” 

“What’s going to happen after we get out of here?” 

Taking a deep breath, Glimmer looked aside. “I don’t know.” 

“I can’t stay.” 

“You saved my life. The princesses won’t-”

“The princesses won’t look past what I’ve done.” 

“I did.” 

Catra rolled onto her side and shoved herself up, taking Glimmer’s face in her hands. She pressed their foreheads together as her fingers twisted in Glimmer’s hair. There was an ache in her bright eyes, but it wasn’t from her wounds. Glimmer knew what that looked like. This was different, colder and quieter, fleeting through her blood streaked features as her gaze settled on the queen. 

Glimmer’s hands rested on Catra’s waist. Catra held Glimmer’s head in place with one hand while the other traced the long muscle reaching from her jaw to her collarbone. 

“Do you want me in Brightmoon?” she whispered. “Don’t lie. Tell me you want me free to roam around Etheria. Tell me you forgive me for everything I did.” 

“I want you here.” 

“I didn’t ask that.” 

“I can want you without forgiving what you did.” 

Catra bristled. “How?”

“I don’t know! I just know that I do.” 

“Do you want me like you want Adora?” 

“I don’t want to think about Adora!” Glimmer pushed her away, staggering to her feet. She wrapped her arms around herself as she screwed her eyes shut and shook her head. Catra stood across the cell from her. “I don’t want to think about Adora and Bow and how I messed everything up because I’ve gone over it a thousand times in my head already. I wasn’t ready to be queen and it got thrown back in my face! I don’t want to keep being reminded about everything I’ve screwed up!” 

Catra pushed Glimmer against the wall and kissed her. 

Glimmer melted into her touch, wrapping her arms around Catra’s neck as she pressed closer. Her touch burned through the chill of the cell, her lips full and chapped against Glimmer’s and rough, calloused hands gently gripping her waist. 

Giving in to the kiss, Glimmer pushed all other thoughts from her mind. There was heat and passion behind it, maybe even longing, but she knew it was only comfort. They didn’t love each other. This wouldn’t last. They were isolated together with nothing else to do and not enough energy to fight. What else could they expect? 

Catra broke the kiss and buried her face against Glimmer’s neck, taking a deep breath. Glimmer held her tight and brushed her fingers through her hair. 

“Do you love her?” Catra asked.

“Don’t you?” Glimmer said. 

Catra responded with another kiss. Glimmer pulled her close and tried to forget the world outside, tried to think past the blood she tasted on Catra’s lips and the way her body trembled against her. 

_It won’t last,_ she told herself as she kissed Catra back. _This won’t last._

\---

Horde Prime’s ship laid in ruins in the center of a massive crater. The woods around it were obliterated, reduced to smoldering stumps amidst the wreckage. Glimmer stood at the edge, looking over the remains, bloodied and bruised but still standing. Catra stood off to her right and watched it burn in silence. They turned to each other. They were home, but they knew what that meant for them. This was a different world than the one they made in their cell. There were different rules. 

Catra swallowed hard and drew herself up. “Glimmer, I-”

“Glimmer!” 

Adora and Bow burst into the smoking clearing. Catra shrank back as Glimmer whirled around, watching the queen’s face light up as she leapt into their arms. 

“Bow! Adora!”

The trio fell to their knees, tears streaming down their faces as they clung to each other. Bow held her hand as he pulled away and struggled to speak past his sobs. 

“W-We’re so happy you’re okay! We, we thought…”

“We didn’t know what happened,” Adora filled in. “We thought you were hurt.” 

“No, I’m okay, you guys,” Glimmer assured them. “Everything’s alright.” 

Adora helped her to her feet as Bow composed himself and wrapped her arms around Glimmer’s waist. “I missed you,” she whispered. Glimmer closed her eyes, relaxing into the fortress of Adora’s strong embrace. “I’m so glad you’re home.” 

“I am, too,” Glimmer sighed. Lifting her head, she looked over Adora’s shoulder. 

Blood was smeared across Catra’s face. She watched them with a frigid glare, her mouth twisted and teeth bared. Her fists trembled by her side. Glimmer thought of those trembling hands on her waist, the harsh, snarling lips pressed gently against hers. She bristled as her stomach dropped, and she stepped out of Adora’s arms. 

“Catra,” she began. 

“Catra?!” Bow squeaked. He and Adora turned on the force captain, and Adora drew a simple sword. Glimmer didn’t have time to wonder why She-Ra’s sword had been replaced. Catra backed away, her eyes locked with Glimmer’s.

“Catra, wait!” she begged. 

Adora stepped between them and pushed Glimmer behind her. “Stay back, Glimmer! We’ll handle this.” 

“No, Adora, you don’t understand!” 

Catra turned on her heel and ran. 

“Catra!” 

Adora held Glimmer back as the force captain disappeared into what remained of the treeline. Glimmer’s heart sank. Adora wrapped her arms around her, oblivious to the guilt contorting Glimmer’s expression. She buried her face against Adora’s shoulder and fought back tears as Adora stroked her hair. 

“It’s okay,” Adora said. “You’re safe now. I’ve got you, Glim. I’m right here.” 

Glimmer risked a glance over Adora’s shoulder, her vision blurred by tears. For just a moment, a pair of luminescent, mismatched eyes caught her gaze before they disappeared into the trees. 

Adora held her tighter. She hid her face against Adora’s chest and, for the first time in months, begged for silence. 


End file.
